


everything's better (with you by my side)

by tylerscreamingintothevoid



Series: crawl out through the fallout back to me. [1]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Cute, Fluff, Gunshot Wounds, Injury, Injury Recovery, M/M, Mutual Pining, One Shot, Post-Canon, scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 20:17:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17987855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tylerscreamingintothevoid/pseuds/tylerscreamingintothevoid
Summary: The Sole Survivor is patching up MacCready's wounds when he brings up taking a trip out of the Commonwealth.





	everything's better (with you by my side)

“Do you really have to do that?”

Bart stared MacCready down. He didn't have time for his attitude, pushing him down onto the bench. “Sit still, bud.”

MacCready wriggled under the man’s touch, barely letting him open up his duster. Blood was soaking through his shirt, and had left a stain on the sleeve of his jacket. Bart carefully rolled up Mac’s sleeve, until the fresh wound was exposed to air.

Mac groaned. “Fudge! Is that really-”

“Let me,” mumbled Bart, setting down his medical kit. “I know how to patch up a dirty wound like that.”

“I already used a Stimpak, don't _worry_.”

“Stimpaks don't get bullets out of your arm, dummy.”

MacCready shifted slightly, embarrassed that he had someone else fixing him up. Helping him. Bart pulled out a pair of tweezers, twisting Mac’s arm a little to get a better view of the injury.

“Man, you lug a lot of useless crap across the Commonwealth.”

Bart looked to the tweezers, then chuckled. “Useless crap comes in useful sometimes, young man.”

It was an alright day, for the Commonwealth. Sun shining down on Boston Commons, and the two had become accustomed to that early Spring smell of dead raiders.

“So I was thinking,” said Bart as he dug the tweezers in to try to fish the bullet out.

MacCready scoffed. “A dangerous thing for _you_ to do.”

Bart shook his head. “Maybe we should go on a trip.”

The men looked to one another- that irritating sparkle in Bart’s green eyes made Mac’s cheeks redden. “Huh? A trip? What, you got us a new job?”

“No.”

“Nuka-World?”

“No, god no. That shithole-”

MacCready twitched as the tweezers went deeper and he let out an annoyed grown. “ _ Hey _ , that shithole makes some  _ killer _ drinks.”

“It also makes killers, full stop. No, I meant… we could see  _ him _ .”

Mac didn't catch on immediately, but when he did, he played dumb anyway. “Huh?”

“Duncan.” Bart heaved as he caught the bullet between the tips of the tweezer. “Fuck yeah.”

MacCready let a silence hang in the air. Seeing his son again-

The cure had worked, which was great. But he wasn't ready to go back to the Capital Wasteland, or to see him again. Not after what happened.

“Uh, I can't.”

Bart looked up. “What?”

Mac pulled away, much to Bart’s annoyance, who now held his arm still.

“Bart, I can't do that. M’not ready.”

Bart sighed. “RJ, you should see him. I know you're not ready, but it's also on your mind, like,  _ all _ the time. Don't you want him to meet the new you?”

Mac furrowed his brow. Seeing Duncan would be nice. Maybe putting it off this long has affected the kid already. Maybe he should just leave him alone, before he can mess his life up. But Bart deserved to see him. Bart had helped get the cure back, and MacCready owed him.

He looked away from the man. No, he didn't actually think that he'd messed up. He knew he hadn't. He just…

He was scared. Of what Duncan would think, of having a mercenary father.

Bart noted the man’s silence, and took the cue to interject. “It’s fine. Up to you, really. Your kid and all.”

Mac glanced back down. “To heck with it. I-I’d like that. It's long overdue, honestly. And I want you to meet him, too.”

Bart smirked. “Really? Why?”

“Uh. As if any kid wouldn't wanna meet a vault-dwellin’ synth-helpin’ general of, uh, a freakin’  _ army _ .”

“I wouldn't say an army-”

“You've got the whole Commonwealth backing you, pal. Wanderer- whatever your railroad name  _ bullcrap _ is- that's a household name. And you remember your roots. Remember who helped ya.”

Bart hummed. “Like you?”

MacCready grinned. “Like me-  _ yeah _ , like me.”

In their shared moment of peace, Bart positively _had_ to ruin it by suddenly pulling the bullet from his arm. Mac howled, reaching for his arm, but Bart grabbed his hand. “You’ll infect it before I even get a chance to disinfect.”

“Disinfect? With-”

Bart was already dabbing a rag with alcohol and pressing it on the wound, leading MacCready to cry out. “Oh, for God’s sake-!”

The sole survivor chuckled to himself, pulling the rag away and grabbing bandages from his kit. “Almost done. Just gonna wrap it up.”

He tightly tied the bandage around MacCready’s arm, the man wincing a final time.

“There. That'll do you a world of good. And I'm glad we talked.”

MacCready got to his feet, pulling his duster on over his shoulders and grumbling to himself. “Didn't exactly  _ kiss it better _ , did you?”

Bart rolled his eyes, tugging MacCready close to his and lifting his arm. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to the warm skin just above the bandage-covered wound. He looked up. “Better?”

Mac’s face was covered in a light blush, darkening his usually faint freckles. He gave in. “Better, babe.”

**Author's Note:**

> [Tumblr](http://merchuiu-sedellath.tumblr.com)


End file.
